One man injured in West Valley drive-by shooting

By Benjamin Wood , Deseret News

Published: Sunday, Aug. 2 2015 2:59 p.m. MDT

WEST VALLEY — A man was grazed in the leg by a bullet early Monday morning during a drive-by shooting, according to police.

Just before 2 a.m. Monday authorities received calls that shots had been fired in the area of 2411 West and 3800 South, West Valley Police Sgt. Steve Burke said. When officers arrived, they found a 30-year-old man with a gunshot wound to the left shin.

According to witnesses, the injured man and two members of his family were sitting out in front of their apartment when two men in a dark SUV pulled up, shouted something out the window and opened fire.

Burke said between three and five rounds were fired. There were no other injuries beside the man who was grazed in the leg, but a second bullet was recovered from inside a neighboring apartment.

"It went through the door and ended up on the floor of a closet," Burke said.

Burke said the men in the SUV were believed to have shouted out a name or series of letters, possibly referring to a gang. He said it does not appear the victim or the other men shot at have any gang ties, but it's possible the shooters confused them for someone else.

"They could've been just sitting in the wrong place at the wrong time, and if these other guys were gang members they might not have liked that," Burke said. "These guys were just sitting in front of their apartment visiting with family."

The sister of the injured man said she was inside the apartment watching television with her daughter and sister when the shooting began. She said the incident makes her feel less secure about leaving the apartment.

"As far as the wrong place and the wrong time that scares me because we’re home," she said. "You don’t want to come outside anymore, you realize that some people are crazy and they just don’t care."